The City Council Finance Committee meeting last night should be a real eye opener for all the taxpayers in the City. The facts and figures presented by DMD Director Kelly Coures  did redefine “quality of life†issues for this city and exclude Emperor Penguins at Mesker Zoo, Dog Parks, and bike paths. Perhaps the fact that things in McCutchanville-area neighborhood are pretty rosy but in the City the population is shrinking rapidly and so are property values and incomes.
Mr. Coures delivered alarming news about the current situation the City finds itself in, but did so in a way that was very matter-of-fact.  He even said that we have been too complacent for too long , and we agree. He announced that in 41 census tracts in Evansville, only one showed appreciable population growth and that is the that the Cedar Trace  Federal subsidized housing complex.
He .was pleased that Goosetown area showed a “small increase†in population, which he credited Brownfields with.  Mr. Coures articulated that the only housing growth in the fourth ward came from projects subsidized through DMD.  His presentation had a map that basically portrays a center wracked by poverty, crime, and blight, with a rapidly dwindling population. Those neighborhoods are ringed by parts of the second and third wards, that are also shrinking and getting poorer.
The downtown and Historic District are the lone area showing any appreciable increase in property values. Only the Census tracts abutting the county lines seem to even be holding their own. In short, even the best parts of Evansville are only average in retaining population and owner-occupied homes.
The entire study and all of the bad news are displayed on the City’s website. The information reported is quite up-to-date, using 2015 data. No mention was made of what the study cost, but it is worthwhile to know how little the Federal dollars thrown at the City by the current and past administrations have accomplished, You can dig into all of the bad news at http://www.evansville.in.gov/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=16618, but we suggest that you view the video of last night’s meeting for your sanity’s sake, as the report is 300+ pages and does a fairly good job of sugar-coating the facts.
Finally, we appreciate Mr. Coures being frank and for presenting  the facts in the manner that he did.
Be careful not to buy into the perception that persons who rent do so because they can’t afford to own their own homes. This is an offensive concept. Many middle and upper-income individuals do not want the responsibility of taking care of a house. After all, the city has gifted Michael Martin with rundown properties so he can turn them into apartments that lease for as much as $1,200 a month. More than enough for a mortgage payment. Coures is again using a microscope to analyze the big picture to support his position. He strategically jumps from preaching about building new housing to lusting to tear down bad structures, with no attention paid to preventing these houses from taking that downward spiral. Why don’t we pay more attention to helping struggling homeowners care for their dwellings instead of tearing them down after the unemployed and elderly are forced to abandon them?
What? Mr. Coures didn’t point out how much the Haynie’s Corner area had improved after the massive influx of City funding to his buddies? Or the Franklin Street area had improved with the increased City cash flow too – oops, I forgot, Franklin Street was done the old Capitalist way, pulling yourself up by your bootstraps. And he was silent on how the North Main “investment” is moving right along and showing a,great ROI?
Not sure about that document link. It’s dated October 2014, so no 2015 figures in there. Maybe the link is just wrong.
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